This copy is for your personal non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies of Toronto Star content for distribution to colleagues, clients or customers, or inquire about permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com

Vunerable Novak Djokovic ousted at Wimbledon: DiManno

For the first time in five consecutive majors, for the first time in 30 Grand Slam matches in a row, for the first time ever to an American opponent at the All England Club, Djokovic walked away from the court a loser.

For the first time in five consecutive majors, for the first time in 30 Grand Slam matches in a row, Novak Djokovic left the court on the losing end. (ADRIAN DENNIS / AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

Cracked down the middle, like a petrified fault line, and Novak Djokovic fell through the yawning crevice.

His molten core of consistency chill-axed.

For the first time in five consecutive majors, for the first time in 30 Grand Slam matches in a row, for the first time ever to an American opponent at the All England Club, Djokovic walked away from the court a loser on Saturday.

No. 1 in the world: Gone.

Article Continued Below

Top seed at Wimbledon: Gone.

Defending champion: Gone.

Calendar slam bid: Gone.

Aura of invincibility: Gone.

And Djokovic — who posted photos of himself riding around town atop a London double-decker, all smiles, all accessible, all ingratiating with a public that has been particularly cool to his bona fides as the current colossi of tennis — could barely wait to get away from his Waterloo at Wimbledon. Pack up the dolls, the dishes, the wife, the baby, the shattered hopes of glory reprised at SW19, and scram.

“Thankfully, I have a family and I have a life outside of tennis. I have plenty of things to look forward to.”

It will be difficult not to look back, however, at everything that was squandered in a four-set third-round defeat by Sam Querrey, the No. 41 globally-ranked and 28th-seeded Californian whose biggest claim to fame thus far was last year appearing on an American TV dating show called Millionaire Matchmaker. He got the girl of his dreams, but only fleetingly.

“The date was fun, the girl I chose was really cool. At the end of the episode it said we’re still together. But actually she never talked to me once after the show was shot.”

Maybe she’ll give him a ding now.

A match thrice interrupted by rain on Saturday, and suspended the previous night with Querrey up two sets to none, came to its convulsive conclusion on a tie-breaker which Djokovic had led, just as he’d been up 5-4 in the fourth — after staying alive by taking the third set 6-3 — breaking Querrey on the fourth attempt with a guttural exclamation mark, then serving to level the match at two sets apiece. But Querrey, with his indomitable serve — against the best serve-returner in the sport — broke right back at 5-5, held at 6-5 and, after Djokovic did the same, the two men re-set for Tiebreak II.

And still, though this was a Djokovic far different from what we’ve seen in the past year — vulnerable, un-dominant, lacing focus in repeated unforced errors, an astonishing 31 in the match — the prevailing view was that he’d pull it off. Because that’s what he does. What he did here a year ago, rallying from two sets down against South African Kevin Anderson, the 14th seed, in the fourth round. Then, as well, the match had been overnight suspended, Djokovic re-charged with play resumed the following day. Surely the Court 1 crowd was in for an episode of déjà vu?

Except Djokovic, seeking to solidify his eminence as arguably the greatest player of this era — the Roger Federer segue epoch — did not return to the court Saturday afternoon substantively altered and adjusted from the 7-6, 6-1 trailing player who’d left it the night before.

At morning practice with coach Boris Becker, Djokovic seemed cross and out of sorts, a peeved posture that would not benefit from one-two-three rain timeouts, in and out and in and out and in and out of the men’s locker room. But Querrey obviously faced the same circumstances, as Djokovic was careful to point out at his post-match press conference, a mere 20 minutes after the confrontation had ended, as if he just wanted to get the whole ordeal over with as quickly as possible.

“It’s the same for both of us,” he emphasized, making no excuse for caving on the second tie-breaker 7-6. “It’s really not necessary to talk about the rain interruptions and everything, all the conditions. It’s obvious that not just us but all the people who were coming to watch us play are frustrated because of so many delays.”

Fourteen out of 16 tie-breaks Djokovic had won this year.

Showers under the sun, wind under the clouds when the rain receded. Kind of eerie and otherworldly overall. In some of the games he dropped, it was Djokovic who looked haunted, perplexed, swallowed up by his opponent’s huge serve, his 31 aces, the American’s unwillingness to engage in long rally points that would have played to the Serb’s strength. Mostly, the six-foot-six Querrey — loser to Djokovic in eight of their nine previous meetings — refused to concede a damn thing, didn’t wobble under the intense pressure, even when his legs must have been feeling terribly heavy.

“It’s an unbelievable win and to do it here at Wimbledon is really special,” said Querrey, before striding off to prepare for a doubles match. “I’m just ecstatic right now, so happy. Today I played the break points really well. Every time I had a break point I was able to come up with a big serve and then in the tiebreak I hung in there and got a couple of loose points and that was it.”

No American male had made it to the quarter-finals in the past 18 Grand Slams.

There were rumours last night that Djokovic had been bothered by a shoulder injury, which might have explained a usually brilliant backhand far from par and serve speed down from its usual vehemence — if not the mental mistakes committed. But twice in his press conference given a chance to take that exit route, he refused to do so, beyond admitting he was “not really’’ at 100 per cent, refusing to elaborate.

Any reason for concern? “No.’’ But why then did you not seem yourself? “I just said I don’t want to talk about it. Please respect that. Thank you.’’

Upsets — and few have been more spectacular than this — are of the moment. Spectators savour them. Until reality sinks in. Tournaments are diminished by the loss of top players, and this one has been spitting them out like watermelon seed.

Few beyond those who’ve been spared a Wimbledon tennis tango with Djokovic — the Andy Murray camp, the Federer camp, the Milos Raonic camp — can be thrilled about his humiliating expulsion.

The man out-going tried to gather his dignity about him.

“It’s been a very successful year so far, but a very long one, exhausting one, in every sense of the word. I just need some rest.

The Toronto Star and thestar.com, each property of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, One Yonge Street, 4th Floor, Toronto, ON, M5E 1E6. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please contact us or see our privacy policy for more information.

More from the Toronto Star & Partners

LOADING

Copyright owned or licensed by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or distribution of this content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited and/or its licensors. To order copies of Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com